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Hugh Hefner’s current wifey recently had her breast implants removed, saying they ‘poisoned her.’ She says she'll never get implants again. But she’s in the minority as implants continue to be one of the most popular cosmetic procedures globally, with 297,297 breast augmentations taking place in America in 2015, according to the International Society of Plastic Surgeons.

If you factor in all the other breast related surgeries as well, from uplifts, to reconstructions, the number of operations rises to 627,165.

Bigger busts are in demand, and this has led to large profits in an industry that generally requires cash up front (elective surgeries are rarely covered by insurance). And cosmetic surgery is an incredibly lucrative business, making an estimated $20 billion a year -- predicted to rise to $27 billion by 2019.

This has inspired a number of innovators to create new and interesting products to cater to demand — and to boost their profits.

Here are seven of the most interesting companies to have on your radar.

B-Lite's tagline is the “world's lightest breast implant”, and they’re up to 30% lighter than others on the market. The reason this is important is beacuse of the average longevity of the implant — extra weight often causes implants to sag, and this lighter version extends their life. For the uninitiated, breast implants are considered temporary augmentations and they need to be changed every 10-15 years.

“Implants replace lost volume but also act as a dead weight further increasing gravitational pull on the breast tissue,” says Charles Weatherstone G&G Biotechnology Marketing Director for B-Lite. Another reason people might want B-Lite is when they have a mastectomy. “A lightweight breast implant has significant benefits in the situation because it reduces the stress on already compromised tissue,” he says. They’re being used in Europe and The Middle East but have yet to get FDA approval.

As women age, breast naturally start to sag, Up till now, the only real way to get results was to have a breast lift — an uncomfortable surgery that leaves scarring. And even then, it often ‘bottomed out’ leaving the breasts looking a little mashed. Orbix Medical wants to fix that with OrbiShape, a silicon sling mesh that’s sutured to the breast, providing an ‘internal bra’ like action.

But not everyone is enthusiastic. “I don't like putting these in a virgin breast augmentation,” says RealSelf Top Doctor Barry Weintraub. "If it gets infected you have a foreign body, And they're notorious for trapping organisms and then there’s trouble...”

Making sure you get exactly what you pay for is difficult in surgery as expectations vary and it’s hard to identify just what a patient wants. Illusio Imaging changes all that, using real-time augmented reality modelling so patients and their doctors can get a better understanding of what's the desired outcome for their implants. The patient stands in front of the doctor’s iPad, and they use the Illusio app to adjust breast parameters - from fullness to size and color. The patient sees this on a screen, and can make adjustments in real time. Where this differs from Paintshop is the sophistication of the tools — and because it’s only sold to doctors, they can advise on what's a realistic outcome.

This launched in January 2016 and is in a number of surgeons offices already. “It’s an easy sell from an investor's perspective,” says CEO Ethan Winner. “The average profit to the surgeon is over $3,600, and that’s a lot to play with.” For now, Winner is looking to scale the company in America, before he heads overseas “We’re focused on our next round — looking at angel investors or VC’s,” he says.”Development is 95% complete and we’re looking to raise half a million.” So far, 60% of interest has been from overseas and he’s considering his options. But he still needs to get into doctors offices in order to succeed, and opinions on its value differ.

“I don’t find 3D imaging helpful,” says Los Angeles plastic surgeon Elliot Hirsch. “I don’t use it in my practice. There's no element of time and that's the problem with it, sure it shows what you'll look like with a size but doesn't show how tissues will change in one, five, or ten years."

Have trouble making up your mind? Mentor has a solution for you. The company has been FDA approved since 2006, so these implants should come with some peace of mind. Their saline-filled chest bags can be adjusted post-operatively, for up to six months after surgery. Doctors can add or subtract saline to get them to the ideal size — sometimes you just have to see something on, y’know? This works by a tiny tube that’s left attached after surgery; once the final shape is decided upon it gets removed.

This might be the most high-tech breast of the lot. Leaving aside their proprietary gel and mesh, this breast features an app and an RFID chip. The deal is that you scan the breast using a handheld transponder and the data on the chip gets relayed to the app or device. That means the implant can be easily identified and surgeons have a better understanding of what to do with it. Plus, they get that info without having to be invasive — and they can potentially tell if there has been a rupture. Considering this, it’s no wonder that they announced a $28 million investment round.

I checked in with Establishment Labs CEO Juan José Chacón Quirós to see just why they decided the implant needed to be so techie. [edited for clarity]

Zara Stone: How does the RFID process with the implant work — and how important was it to have this?

Juan José Chacón Quirós: After examining past product recalls from other companies and the industry's difficulties in dealing with patient traceability, Motiva Implants now contain Q Inside Safety Technology, allowing access to a 15 digit electronic serial number, manufacturer’s name, the date of manufacture, lot number and other data — accessible from outside the body with a proprietary, handheld secure micro- transponder. This information is linked to the MotivaImagine App so that patients can carry their safety information at all times.To date, there have been over 180,000 implantations which are currently available in approximately 60 countries, the vast majority in Europe.

Zara Stone: Why is innovation in the breast space important?

Juan José Chacón Quirós: Breast surgery, aesthetic or reconstructive, is the most important plastic surgery procedure for women worldwide. We remain focused on reducing reoperation rates, capsular contracture and other safety issues; striving for an implant that is both safe and aesthetic pleasing to the patient.

Better technology has given us smarter imaging methods, which means that breast cancer survival rate has risen. However, this also means that mastectomies are up — 36% since 2005. Reconstruction can be a long and painful process, and often the breast area has an expander installed, which stretches the skin to make room for an eventual process. The common method was to regularly visit the doctor and each time he’d change the expander volume. Well, now a new company is offering patients a way to do this part of the process at home. AeroForm AirXpanders come with a remote control that let patients adjust the size at home — in privacy, and avoid extra time at the doctor's office. It’s currently being used in Australia and waiting for FDA approval.

But doctors still need to be convinced. “ I find this kind of gimmicky,” says RealSelf Top Doctor Dr. Barry Weintraub. “Putting it in the hands of patients... they're not a professional. What do they do if they press a button and the skin turns white? To me it's not going down a smart road.”

Another downside of breast reconstruction is that the body sometimes rejects foreign tissue, which is extra traumatic when you’ve been poked and prodded for a while. Austin-based TeVideo BioDevices is a startup that uses human skin cells for 3D printing — they’ve printed nipples from human skin cells that last longer than nipple tattoos.

“Our greatest challenge isn’t the bioprinter. it’s that we are bringing a biomedical product to market that requires clinical trial. That requires more funding than, say, a software app,” founder Laura Bosworth told Austin Woman Magazine. “[The nipples] are our first product. They’re not available yet, but we hope to be in clinical trial in two years. We haven’t decided what our second product is going to be. There are a lot of things around treating someone who has been [scarred] from a car accident or faces pigmentation challenges from burns. The list is quite long of the potential things we can treat.” The National Science Foundation is one of their supporters.

The Future of Funding Breasts

This is a short overview of some of the technological innovations in the breast space, and the rise of entrepreneurial investment in beautifying -- and benefitting -- bodies. Hopefully, we'll see more creativity and research coming out over the next few years -- they don't call it Silicon Valley for nothing...

I’m a San Francisco-based freelance journalist whose work has appeared in The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, OZY, Fusion and more. I report on technology and

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I’m a San Francisco-based freelance journalist whose work has appeared in The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, OZY, Fusion and more. I report on technology and culture, and the eccentricities of the startup world. I’m a graduate of Columbia J-School. Follow me on Twitter @almostzara